The Wooden Award released its midseason list of 25 players on Wednesday, and the most surprising thing about it to most people was that Kansas freshman Joel Embiid was nowhere to be found even though he's spent the past two weeks playing a huge role for a Kansas team that's topped four straight nationally ranked opponents.

Why?

That's what folks were asking on Twitter.

Why isn't Joel Embiid on this Wooden Award list?

The answer is rooted in the fact that ballots were due Jan. 10, and, at that point, it was reasonable to omit Embiid. Kansas, remember, was only 10-4 on Jan. 10 and just a game removed from a home loss to San Diego State, and it should also be noted that Embiid finished with six points and six rebounds in a win over Oklahoma two days before ballots were due. Truth be told, I think all of that played a role in his omission, and, yes, it's an omission that seems silly now that he's scored at least 12 points and grabbed at least nine rebounds in three of KU's past four games, one of which was that 13-point, 11-rebound, eight-block performance last Saturday against Oklahoma State.